Rigamarole - A Foot In The Crease - Episode 3.13

www.afootinthecrease.com

"Let's face it. It probably was the wrong place for a rookie general manager to start. I mean, all GMs make mistakes, but they are not under the constant microscope and scrutiny that you have in Toronto, which is, in our opinion, the top hockey market there is.” Words spoken by MLSE president Richard Peddie earlier this week regarding his hiring of John Ferguson Jr in 2003 and frankly the best thing he could have said so long as the question was “What is the dumbest thing Richard Peddie could possibly say to further ignite the five alarm fire surrounding the management of the Toronto Maple Leafs. Whether Peddie meant hiring Ferguson was a mistake or hiring Ferguson despite his lack of experience was a mistake, he essentially said he made the wrong move.

Give Peddie full credit for admitting a mistake that is certainly not a secret to many anymore but now what choice does he really have other than to fire JFJ. If he doesn’t, how can Ferguson be expected to operate effectively when his boss has stated publicly that hiring Ferguson was a mistake? It’s time for Richard Peddie to step away from managing the sporting operations of MLSE and instead focus entirely on maximizing the company’s revenue intake. Peddie tried dipping his hand into the Toronto Raptors’ business but that didn’t go so well. Now with Bryan Colangelo in full and complete control, the Raptors are heading in the right direction. With Peddie still somewhat involved on the hockey side, the current state of the Maple Leafs speaks for itself.

It’s time for MLSE to follow their own model. Select an intelligent hockey person, whoever they decide it to be. Give them full control and let them do whatever they feel must be done to rejuvenate the Maple Leafs, no questions asked! Richard Peddie, you are not a bad executive. You know how to make the money, you just don’t know how to run a sports operation. But hey, all that was just rigamarole.